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Join on Telegram Rabat – At least five African migrants died and another 10 have gone missing after their boat to Italy sank off of the coast of Tunisia’s Sfax region, the country’s authorities announced on Saturday.
Tunisia’s coast guard rescued another 20 migrants, a judicial official added.
Given Tunisia’s proximity to Italy, the Sfax region has become one of Africa’s biggest hotspots for migrants seeking to cross the Mediterranean to Europe in search of a better life.
According to the International Organization for Migration’s (IOM) Missing Migrants project, more than 25,000 migrants have died while crossing the Mediterranean since 2014, making it the deadliest area in the world for migrants.
Hundreds of people have drowned near Tunisia’s coasts in particular, Reuters reports, attributing the number to an increase in attempted Mediterranean crossings from Tunisia and Libya.
Worsening economic conditions in the country have motivated more crossings, with local organizations recording more attempts at irregular migration in 2022.
At the same time, Italy’s new right-wing government has pledged to fight the phenomenon, putting measures in place to fine charities and organizations that rescue asylum seekers at sea.
German Charity SOS Humanity took Italy’s government to court last year over their decision to prevent some people saved by the charity from disembarking their boats.
Data from Italy’s Interior Ministry show that more than 100,000 asylum seekers disembarked in the country in 2022, up from 66,500 in the year before.
